Software engineer and long time Google employee Chade-Meng Tan talked to The Economist about Search Inside Yourself, a meditation program he has been running at the company since 2007. [The Economist]

First Lady Michelle Obama visited with Sikh American families affected by the tragic shooting in Oak Creek, Wisconsin on August 24. In addition to offering her condolences, the First Lady “underscored how strong those who died were, and how strong the Sikh community continues to be.” [WhiteHouse.gov]

The man known as Kenji Fujimoto, who wrote a tell-all about the lavish lifestyle enjoyed by the late Kim Jong-il, was surprised to be welcomed back so warmly by Kim Jong-un on a recent trip to North Korea. [New York Times]

While Psy’s “Gangnam Style” continues to amaze and delight here in the US, people back in Korea are confused by its success. [WSJ]

Congratulations are in order for Lydia Ko, who became the youngest winner in LPGA tour history last weekend. [Yahoo! Sports]

If you want to be down with Asian American culture, you need to be in the San Gabriel Valley in Southern California. It’s an exciting time for those Chinese-Americans who are coming of age in ‘the 626.’ [Los Angeles Times]

Of course, I hope this was all a show for the North Korean media and that everyone went home and secretly did a happy dance, but even with Kim Jong-il gone, it doesn’t seem that life’s going to get better for North Koreans any time soon.

200 bona fide North Korean soccer fans arrived in Doha, Qatar via unicorn this month for the 2011 Asian Cup qualifiers. Fans of the other football have a reputation for being fanatical and violent in many countries, and the DPRK’s are no exception.

[Ed. note--this post was written in advance of the tragic shooting that occurred on Saturday, Jan. 8 in Arizona. Our thoughts go out to those affected by those events.]

We talked a lot in the closing months of last year how 2010 was BALLS. And you know why it was balls? Because it was a year ruled by DICKS. Dickheads, dickweeds, dickwads, dicktwits, dickfaces, cheesedicks, needledicks, pencil dicks, limp dicks, and a various assortment of Dick Tracies, seemed to poke their, ahem, heads out from all sides. It was actually hard to come up with only 10 Dicks From ’10 because the year was so chock-full of cocksmokers. But somehow, after a little dicking around, we did.

And here they are, 2010′s Most Dickstinguished:

THE PALIN FAMILY

WHY THEY’RE DICKS: Everywhere we turned in 2010, there was another story about somebody named Palin being a dick. There was Todd Palin writing angry, poorly-punctuated emails. There was Willow Palin writing gay slur-slinging, poorly-punctuated Facebook comments. There was Bristol Palin being billed as a “teen activist” and dancing her way horribly to the Dancing With the Stars finals. And then there was Mama Grizzdick herself, Sarah Palin, who showed time and again that not only was she a dick, she was a Dick of All Trades–a refudiating dick, a 1st Amendment-confused dick, an Islamophobic dick, a book-shilling dick, a reality TV dick, a Tea Party dick, and, generally, an all-around fame-trolling dick of the highest magnitude. While it’s clear the Palins are gunning to be the First Family of the United States in 2012, for now, they can pat themselves on the backs for being, hands-down, the First Family of the United States of Dickbags.

OUR SOLUTION: The family of dicks that gets Dick Cancer together stays together. Another idea: JUST. GO. AWAY.

If Alicia Machado, actress/singer and former Miss Universe, hadn’t quit Twitter, perhaps she would’ve continued to chat with her pal, Mexican singer/actress Paulina Rubio, about the recent public outcry against her prayers for The Chinas. We imagine it might have gone something like…

YoSoyMzUniverse96Alicia Machado
@paurubio wut ppl dont understand is i’m really a good person, jus wanted every1 to pray for those chinese ppl that are being attacked, not the 1s who attacked or nuthing

Blame the Sarah Palin Media Blitz (2010 Edition), but the former governor of Alaska is a big ticket item in the news today. And not just because she’s peddling that new book or officially declaring a run for presidency (President Palin? That event would be so cataclysmic and shameful that just posting the words could implode the DISGRASIAN server). Thank goodness.

Instead, mills were a-buzzin’ when Dancing With The Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba dished with Access Hollywood about meeting Ms. Palin at the Dancing finale:

The “crush” continued as Carrie Ann noticed a new glow emanating from “The Pistol’s” Mama Grizzly.

“She’s really nice. And I think she spray-tanned for the finale!” Carrie Ann exclaimed. “One of the crew guys came up and he goes, ‘Look at Sarah. Do you think she spray-tanned?’ And I looked at her and I’m like, ‘I think she did!’”

This is important because truth be told, Jen and I have always wondered how Palin maintains her warm and ruddy glow living all the way in gloomy Alaska! Like, totally, Carrie Ann! GIRL CRUSH! La dee dah!

In other news, Sarah Palin was on the Glenn Beck radio show today and, until corrected by Beck’s co-host, sputtered on a bunch of her usual policy nothings while criticizing the current White House stance on North Korea. Continue reading Palin’s Nailin’ It

TRANSLATION: “The server is currently unable to handle the request due to a temporary unloading of ‘maintenance’ on the South Korean puppet group’s island territory. The implication is that this is a temporary condition that will be alleviated after our enrichment of enough uranium to bomb a bitch’s ass if we feel like it is completed.”

How long should you “ooh” and “aah” over a panda stuck in a tree (oh no!) before you do the right thing and rescue it? [BuzzFeed]

This gemstone mosaic portrait of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her daughter Chelsea, based off a picture of them during a 2000 visit to Vietnam, might be the greatest wedding present EVER. [Huffington Post]

The Hangover 2 is heading to Asia, and shooting is expected to begin in Thailand this fall. Is it too much to hope that there won’t be any “ME RUV YOU RONG TIME” jokes in the script? [Celebuzz]

Takeru Kobayashi says that if he hadn’t, y’know, squabbled over his contract and gotten thrown in the clink, he totally would have won this year’s Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest! [AOL News]

Kim Jong Un may succeed his father Kim Jong Il as the “Dear Leader” of North Korea as early as September. Will he sport the perm, wraparound sunglasses, and tracksuit that made his father a fashion legend? Or develop his own signature look? [The Daily Beast]